Tag: Nemour

Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour became the first African gymnast to win an Olympic medal when she secured the gold with a breath-taking routine on the asymmetric bars at the Paris Games that wowed the crowd in Bercy Arena.

The 17-year-old’s fast-paced routine featuring a number of complex release-and-catch manoeuvres delighted the crowd who came to support a gymnast who had previously represented France.

Fans roared and jumped to their feet as soon as Nemour completed her dismount. She immediately broke down in tears as she handed Algeria their first medal of the Paris Olympics, with her performance scoring a staggering 15.700 points.

Nemour was still in complete disbelief after the competition.

“I can’t believe this is happened,” the teenager said after winning her first gold medal at a major global competition. “This is too much. I have no words.”

Nemour was up after China’s Qiu Qiyuan, the 2023 world champion, who had executed a spectacular routine to briefly top the standings with 15.500 points.

“When I saw her result of 15.500 points, I told myself that I would really need to fight,” Nemour said. “I re-focused quickly and got the best mark of my life, and it was the right time to get it.”

The Algerian Olympic Committee issued a statement calling Nemour a legend.

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“You showed the world the strength and determination of Algeria with your wonderful victory,” the statement said.

U.S. gymnast Sunisa Lee, who claimed a second successive Olympic bronze on the apparatus with 14.800 points, could be seen cheering for Nemour throughout her routine.

“I was really aiming for the third place because I knew I actually really wanted Kaylia to win, just because she’s so incredible,” Lee said.

Nina Derwael of Belgium, the champion at the Tokyo Games, finished 0.034 of a point off the podium.

British gymnast Rebecca Downie’s hopes of finishing on the podium were shattered after she fell off the apparatus while attempting her signature release-and-catch move. She finished seventh out of eight finalists.

She returned to complete her routine, nailing her dismount and broke into a smile as she saluted the crowd, ending her Olympic efforts in Paris.

Algerian teenager Kaylia Nemour outshone gymnastics superstar Simone Biles on the uneven bars to qualify for the apparatus and the women’s all-around finals at the Paris Olympics.

The 17-year-old French-born athlete earned an impressive 15.600 points for her bars routine – an acrobatic, gravity-defying performance full of technical skill and difficulty at Bercy Arena.

China’s Qiu Qiyuan, 17, who beat Nemour to gold at last year’s world championships in Antwerp, was second with a score of 15.066 points after three of five groups in qualifying.

Biles, 27, achieved 14.433 on the apparatus which is her weakest, and the four-time Olympic champion could miss out on the eight-woman final in a week’s time.

 “It’s good, but could be better,” said Nemour. “It was a lot of pressure because it’s the first apparatus, first Olympics, and I’m starting with the bars, my goal.

 “But I’m happy, it went really well. There is still a week before the final and I still have room to improve.”

Nemour also pulled off the Yurchenko double twist vault, scoring 14.000, on her final apparatus. She had a few errors on floor (13.160) and beam (13.200) but her overall total of 55.966 earned a place in Thursday’s all-around final behind Biles and defending champion Sunisa Lee.

Nemour has competed for Algeria since last year after a dispute with the French gymnastics federation, and was delighted with the warm welcome in Paris.

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“I didn’t expect that,” she said.“Obviously, it’s stressful but overall I’m happy with that performance.”

Working on the psychological side for the past year has been “paying off”, she said. “I can still improve things. I have three days left to work, so I’m just going to make the most of it.”

She will be bidding to earn a first gymnastics medal for Algeria.